The Roter Sand awaits us in a calm sea when we wake up. Snug in our bunks, we slowly open our eyes to the sight of a breakfast table overflowing with fruit, cereal, bagels and happiness. After breakfast, we are given a safety briefing by the boat’s crew. We learn all sorts of things that we have no desire to put into practice, such as the procedures to be followed in the event of a man overboard or a fire in the hold.
Then came the long-awaited moment: casting off! We left Port Hawkesbury under the watchful eyes of many. Indeed, a ship of the size and stature of the Roter Sand is quite an eye-catcher… We sailed for just over three hours, covering some 30 nautical miles, slicing Cape Breton Island right down the middle and passing through a canal that gave us access to the Bras d’Or Lake, a huge body of fresh water in the heart of the island.
Our trip will also give us the opportunity to run an introductory workshop on the various instruments used in the wheelhouse: GPS, VHF, AIS, EPIRB and other acronyms that are of no interest to a Scrabble player. We also take the opportunity to hoist the Foundation’s flag high and proud. And to top it all off, we pass under a rather narrow drawbridge, which the captain expertly navigated.
The wind picked up in the early afternoon and we dropped anchor in Poulamon Bay. We used a dinghy, a small Zodiac-type motorboat, to go ashore. Jasmin, Justen, Tomas and Camille took the opportunity to take a dip in the water, which was not warm at all! We spent a good three hours on a small, unnamed island, playing some of the Foundation’s classic games, including Ninja and Cowboy.
Back on the boat, Anna-Maria and Béatrice are preparing a dinner of mackerel caught yesterday by our captain and some of the locals. Some people are lounging on deck or fishing; Anna-Maria is taking a break from her job as cook for the evening and will be the only one to bring a fish back on board. For others, it’s the housework that every sailor has to do. Admittedly, some of us grumble about the cleaning shifts or the shower schedule (one shower every three days…), but it doesn’t matter, we’re a great team and we all get together over a tasty meal to share the best moments of the day.
Translated by Lorraine Gagnon